Thermal Container Insulated With Phase Change Material

ABSTRACT

A thermal container insulated with phase change material comprising a plurality of panels to form a body with a plurality of sides, a bottom and a lid, wherein each panel further comprises: a lining board, a phase change cold storage board, an insulation board; and a skin board. The phase change cold storage board further comprises an array of openings filled with solid-solid phase change material. The thermal container can maximize its storage capacity without compromising any volume for ice. It can maintain an accurate temperature range suitable for transportation. The container is reinforced at various locations to improve stability and structural integrity.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The Present application claims priority through Paris Convention to a Chinese Utility Model Patent Application No. 201720111051.0, filed on Feb. 6, 2017, which is hereby incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure is directed to cold-chain or temperature controlled transportation technologies. More specifically it relates to an ice-free thermal container insulated with phase change material.

BACKGROUND OF THE UTILITY MODEL

Thermal containers are mostly used in short-distance transportation and distribution process of cold-chain logistics, in order to store medicines in an environment at 2-8° C. A thermal container is often used with a cold storage ice box, and external high temperature is resisted by melting heat absorption of the cold storage ice box and the heat transfer principle, thus ensuring the temperature in the thermal container relatively constant. However, in the practical operation process, the complex ice box assembly process and the long cold release waiting time will bring a lot of trouble to the fast cold-chain logistics industry. For example, the ice box is put into a −20° C. refrigerator one day ahead of delivery and refrigerated for over 24 h, and then transferred to a 2-8° C. refrigerator after conforming complete freezing by pressing to release cold for over 6 hrs. The thermal container is simultaneously put into the 2-8° C. refrigerator, pre-cooled for over 2 h, and finally charged with medicines and the icebox therein at the same time. The thermal container is fussy in operation and needs relatively long cold release waiting time, so it does not adapt to the fast cold-chain logistics industry and is also not beneficial to transportation of emergency medicines and dealing of emergency. Meanwhile, the icebox assembled in the thermal container may be different in quantity and assembly manner due to different volume of the thermal container, different insulation time, different environmental temperature and the like. Therefore, the specific ice charging quantity and manner need to be calculated by experienced technicians under the specific condition, and simultaneously, the ice charging process cannot be completed without technicians. Common workers cannot operate, causing increase of the labor cost. Besides, the available volume of the thermal container assembled with the icebox would be reduced, and the labor cost may also be increased by management of the icebox. The cold-chain logistics may also encounter such a problem that it is hot in summer and cold in winter all the year round. In the cold northeast regions, the thermal containers used with iceboxes cannot resist external low temperature or meet 2-8° C. refrigeration environments of vaccines and the like. Thus, it is extremely urgent to develop a thermal container which does not need to be charged with ice, is convenient to operate and can be used all the year round.

By arranging hollow phase change energy storage boards in the thermal container, an icebox does not need to be assembled in the thermal container, and medicines are directly put into the thermal container, so that the space utilization rate of the thermal container is greatly improved. Simultaneously, the ice charging operation is not needed, and the thermal container with the hollow phase change energy storage boards can accurately maintain the temperature, so that the thermal container is applicable to short-distance urban distribution and can be used all the year round with strong practicability. At present, however, the thermal container with the hollow phase change energy storage boards has the following problems: 1) the hollow phase change energy storage boards also achieve a supporting effect besides maintaining the temperature, and when the thermal container is stacked, the hollow phase change energy storage boards are easily crushed or damaged (the hollow phase change energy storage boards filled with a phase change material are easily damaged by force when the phase change material is a solid-solid phase change material); and 2) when the hollow phase change energy storage boards maintain the temperature, the heat insulation effect is easily reduced in the absence of an insulation environment.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The utility model is aimed at providing an ice-free phase change thermal container. The thermal container adopting phase change cold storage boards and insulation boards does not need to be charged with ice, is convenient to operate, high in space utilization rate and accurate in temperature control, can be used all the year round and is applicable to short-distance urban distribution, wherein the phase change cold storage boards are unlikely to crush or damage, and the heat insulation effect is good.

The utility model adopts the following technical solution:

An ice-free phase change thermal container, including a body and a cover, wherein the body includes four side boards and a bottom board; the cover, the side boards and the bottom board are respectively composed of a lining board, a phase change cold storage board, an insulation board and a skin board in sequence from inside to outside; the main structure of the body is spliced by the insulation boards, the phase change cold storage boards and the skin boards are fixed on the insulation boards, and the lining boards are fixed on the phase change cold storage boards.

Further, the phase change cold storage board includes a hollow board and a solid-solid phase change material, the hollow board is provided with a plurality of through openings in the width direction, all the openings are arranged in an array, partitions with equal thickness are formed between the adjacent openings, and the solid-solid phase change material is only filled in all the openings of the hollow board.

Further, the phase change cold storage board includes a hollow board and a solid-solid phase change material, the hollow board is provided with a plurality of through openings in the thickness direction, and the solid-solid phase change material wraps the whole hollow board and fills all the openings of the hollow board.

Further, the joints of all sides of the inner surface of the body are bonded and sealed by a sealant, edgings are arranged at the edges of the outer surface of the body, wrap angles are arranged at the base angles, a frame is arranged at the top of the opening of the body, and all the edgings, wrap angles and frame are riveted.

Further, the four edges of the bottom insulation board are respectively supported in clamping grooves of the four lateral insulation boards, the left and right ends of each lateral insulation board are respectively a protruding end and a clamping groove end, and the four lateral insulation boards are matched end to end via the protruding ends and the clamping groove ends to encircle a closed ring.

Further, the inner edges of the opening of the body are sunken, and a sealing strip is arranged at the sunken positions and the corresponding positions of the cover respectively.

Further, both the phase change cold storage board and the skin board are bonded and fixed to the insulation board, and the lining board is bonded and fixed to the phase change cold storage board.

Further, the insulation boards are extruded polystyrene, expanded polystyrene (EPS) or expanded polypropylene (EPP) boards.

The utility model has the following advantages:

1. By adopting the phase change cold storage boards, the thermal container does not need to be charged with ice, is convenient to operate, high in space utilization rate and accurate in temperature control, can be used all the year round and is applicable to short-distance urban distribution; the body is supported by the insulation boards and the phase change cold storage boards are located inside, so that the phase change cold storage boards are unlikely to crush or damage; the insulation boards provide a closed insulation environment for the phase change cold storage boards, thereby improving the heat insulation effect.

2. Because the solid-solid phase change material does not wrap the hollow boards but wrapped by the same, the hollow boards are not necessarily suspended in molds during casting but only cast normally, and thus the thermal container is simple to manufacture and suitable for mass production; because the solid-solid phase change material does not wrap the hollow boards but wrapped by the same, only two ends of the solid-solid phase change material are exposed, and thus the thermal container is unlikely to damage in the presence of a few exposed parts; simultaneously, the thermal container completely supported by the hollow boards is high in impact strength; the hollow boards are often placed transversely (vertical in the width direction), and the openings are formed in the width direction instead of the thickness direction, so that the normal supporting effect of the hollow boards is not influenced and the strength is high; all the openings are arranged in an array, and partitions with equal thickness are formed between the adjacent openings, so that the solid-solid phase change material is furthest accommodated, the heat insulation effect is excellent, and the hollow boards are applicable to manufacturing of special boards for cold-chain transport cases, food thermal containers and refrigerator vans as well as building products.

3. The hollow boards are provided with openings only in the thickness direction, so that the thermal container is simple to manufacture.

4. The frame, the edgings and the wrap angles achieve protecting and strengthening effects and are riveted, so that the thermal container is convenient and firm.

5. The four edges of the lateral insulation boards are all supported in the clamping grooves, so that the lateral insulation boards are clamped and fixed firmly, and the four lateral insulation boards adopting a labyrinth structure are connected firmly.

6. The sealing strips are located at the sunken positions when the cover is closed, i.e., inside the body, so that the attractiveness is not influenced and the exterior can be prevented from being damaged.

7. The phase change cold storage boards, the skin boards and the lining boards, which are light and unlikely to perforate and damage, are bonded.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a section view of an embodiment of the utility model.

FIG. 2 is a stereogram of the embodiment of the utility model.

FIG. 3 is an exploded view of a body in the embodiment of the utility model.

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a side board in the embodiment of the utility model.

FIG. 5 shows embodiment I of a phase change cold storage board in the utility model.

FIG. 6 shows embodiment II of the phase change cold storage board in the utility model.

FIG. 7 shows embodiment III of the phase change cold storage board in the utility model.

FIG. 8 shows embodiment IV of the phase change cold storage board in the utility model.

FIG. 9 shows temperature curves of the embodiment of the utility model (A is temperature in the thermal container, B is environmental temperature).

FIG. 10 shows temperature curves of the embodiment of the utility model (A is temperature in the thermal container, B is environmental temperature).

In which: 1-cover; 2-sealing strip; 3-side board; 4-bottom board; 5-frame; 6-sidebar; 7-corner wrapping; 8-lining board; 9-phase change cold storage board; 10-insulation board; 11-skin board; 12-clamping groove; 13-clamping groove end; 14-protruding end; 15-hollow board; 16-solid-solid phase change material.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

The utility model will be further described below in combination with the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, an ice-free phase change thermal container includes a body and a cover 1, wherein the body includes four side boards 3 and a bottom board 4; the cover 1, the side boards 3 and the bottom board 4 are respectively comprised of a lining board 8, a phase change cold storage board 9, an insulation board 10 and a skin board 11 in sequence from inside to outside (taking the side board 3 as an example, as shown in FIG. 4); the main structure of the body is secured by the insulation boards 10, the phase change cold storage boards 9 and the skin boards 11 are fixed onto the insulation boards 10, and the lining boards 8 are fixed onto the phase change cold storage boards 9. By adopting the phase change cold storage boards 9 (by adopting 5° C. phase change cold storage boards 9, the temperature can be accurately controlled within the range of 2-8° C.), the thermal container does not need to be loaded with ice, is convenient to operate, high in space utilization rate and accurate in temperature control, can be used all year round and is applicable to short-distance urban distribution; the body is supported by the insulation boards 10 and the phase change cold storage boards 9 are located inside, so that the phase change cold storage boards 9 are unlikely to be crushed or damaged; the insulation boards 10 provide a closed insulation environment for the phase change cold storage boards 9, thereby improving the heat insulation effect.

As show in FIGS. 5 and 6, in the two embodiments, the phase change cold storage board 9 comprises a hollow board 15 and solid-solid phase change material 16, the hollow board 15 comprises a plurality of openings (the openings are square, hexagonal or the like) and are arranged in an array, partitions with equal thickness are formed between the adjacent openings, and the solid-solid phase change material 16 is filled into all the openings of the hollow board 15. Because the solid-solid phase change material 16 does not wrap around the hollow board 15, but rather encased by it, the hollow board 15 does not need to be suspended in a mold during casting. It can be casted normally, and thus the thermal container is simple to manufacture and suitable for mass production; because the solid-solid phase change material 16 does not wrap around the hollow board 15, but rather encased by the same, only two ends of the solid-solid phase change material 16 are exposed, and thus the thermal container is unlikely to be damaged in the presence of a few exposed parts; simultaneously, the thermal container completely supported by the hollow boards 15 is high in impact strength; the hollow boards 15 are often placed transversely (vertical in the width direction), and the openings are formed in the width direction instead of the thickness direction, so that the normal supporting effect of the hollow boards 15 is not influenced and the strength is high; all the openings are arranged in an array, and partitions with equal thickness are formed between the adjacent openings, so that the solid-solid phase change material 16 is furthest accommodated, the heat insulation effect is excellent, and the hollow boards 15 are applicable to manufacturing of special boards for cold-chain transport cases, food thermal containers and refrigerator vans as well as building products.

As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, in the two embodiments, the phase change cold storage board 9 includes a hollow board 15 and a solid-solid phase change material 16, the hollow board 15 is provided with a plurality of openings (the openings are circular, square or the like) in the thickness direction, and the solid-solid phase change material 16 fill the whole hollow board 15 and fills all the openings of the hollow board 15. The hollow board 15 is only opened in the thickness direction, so the thermal container is simple to manufacture.

The joints of all sides of the inner surface of the body are bonded and sealed by a sealant (neural silicone sealant), as shown in FIG. 3, in this embodiment, (aluminum) sidebar 6 are arranged at the edges of the outer surface of the body, (aluminum) corner wrappings 7 are arranged around the base, a (stainless steel) frame 5 is arranged at the top of the opening of the body, and all the sidebar 6, corner wrappings 7 and frame 5 are riveted. The frame 5, the sidebar 6 and the corner wrappings 7 achieve strengthening effects and are riveted, so that the thermal container is convenient and firm.

The four edges of the bottom insulation board 10 are respectively secured in clamping grooves 12 of the four lateral insulation boards 10, the left and right ends of each lateral insulation board 10 are respectively a protruding end 14 and a clamping groove end 13 (as shown in FIG. 4), and the four lateral insulation boards 10 are matched end to end via the protruding ends 14 and the clamping groove ends 13 to encircle a closed ring. The four edges of the lateral insulation boards 10 are all supported in the clamping grooves 12, so that the lateral insulation boards 10 are clamped and fixed firmly, and the four lateral insulation boards 10 adopting a labyrinth structure are connected firmly.

As shown in FIG. 1, in this embodiment, the inner edges of the opening of the body are sunken (the sunken positions are protected by the sidebar 6, each sidebar 6 has two layers, the inner layer is wooden, and the outer layer is a plastic strip), and a sealing strip 2 is arranged at the sunken positions and the corresponding positions of the cover 1 respectively. The sealing strips 2 are located at the sunken positions when the cover 1 is closed, i.e., inside the body, so that the attractiveness is not influenced and the exterior can be prevented from being damaged.

In this embodiment, both the phase change cold storage board 9 and the skin board 11 are bonded and fixed to the insulation board 10, and the lining board 8 is bonded and fixed to the phase change cold storage board 9. The phase change cold storage board 9, the skin board 11 and the lining board 8, which are light and unlikely to perforate and damage, are bonded.

The insulation board 10 is an extruded polystyrene, EPS or EPP board or is made of other insulation material, and in this embodiment, the insulation board 10 is preferably an extruded polystyrene board. The extruded polystyrene board has a uniform flat surface and an internal entirely-closed cell foamed continuous and uniform honeycomb structure, and has the characteristics of high compressive strength, light weight, no water absorption, air tightness, wear resistance and non-degradability, still can completely keep the insulation performance and the compressive strength in water, is particularly suitable for heat insulation, heat preservation and damp-proof treatment of buildings, and is attractive in price and quality.

Heat insulation of the thermal container will be tested below.

Test 1: 1) The cover 1 of the thermal container is closed, and the thermal container is refrigerated for 17-20 hours at −20° C.; 2) the thermal container is taken out and put in a 2-8° C. environment, a temperature recorder is put into the thermal container, simulated goods are charged, then the cover 1 is closed, and the thermal container is put in the environmental temperature at 35° C. for heat insulation test. The test result shows that the heat insulation time for 2-8° C. of the thermal container not charged with ice at 35° C. is 10 h and 40 min, and the temperature curve is shown in FIG. 9.

Test 2: 1) The thermal container is pre-cooled for 6 hours at 2-8° C.; 2) the temperature recorder is put into the thermal container, simulated goods are charged, the cover 1 is closed, and then the thermal container is put in the environmental temperature at −20° C. for heat insulation test. The test result shows that the heat insulation time for 2-8° C. of the thermal container not charged with ice at −20° C. is 11 h and 40 min, and the temperature curve is shown in FIG. 10.

It should be understood that improvements or modifications may be made according to the above descriptions for those of ordinary skill in the art, and these improvements and modifications shall fall into the protection scope of the appended claims of the utility model. 

What is claimed is:
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 9. A thermal container insulated with phase change material comprising a plurality of panels to form a body with a plurality of sides, a bottom and a lid, wherein each panel, in an order from inside to outside, further comprises: a lining board, a phase change cold storage board, an insulation board; and a skin board.
 10. A thermal container insulated with phase change material of claim 9, wherein the insulation board provides support as an anchoring structure for the phase change cold storage board and the skin board, and the lining board is further fixed onto the phase change cold storage board.
 11. A thermal container insulated with phase change material of claim 9, wherein the phase change cold storage board further comprising: a hollow board which comprises a grid of abutting partitions of a preset geometric shape organized in an array both lengthwise and widthwise; and a solid-solid phase change material filled into openings reserved by the grid of abutting partitions.
 12. A thermal container insulated with phase change material of claim 9 is reinforced by: applying sealant along all edges where any one inner surface meets another; applying sidebars around all outside edges; applying corner wrappings to all outside base corners; applying a frame around edges where the thermal container opens; and fastening the sidebars, corner wrappings and the frame with rivets.
 13. A thermal container insulated with phase change material of claim 9, wherein the insulation board further comprises clamping grooves around its bottom edges, and can be snapped into position with interlocking protrusions and indentations located at front and back ends where one edge meets another.
 14. A thermal container insulated with phase change material of claim 9, wherein inner edges along the container's opening are sunken to accommodate corresponding edges from the cover and sealing strips all around.
 15. A thermal container insulated with phase change material of claim 9, wherein the insulation boards further comprises extruded polystyrene, EPS, and EPP boards.
 16. A thermal container insulated with phase change material of claim 9, wherein the lining board is bonded to the phase change cold storage board. 